Cintas Posts Record Sales

7.2% Year-Over-Year Gain

Counselor Top 40 distributor Cintas (asi/162167) has announced its total company sales for the quarter ended May 31 increased to $1.13 billion, a 7.2% year-over-year gain. For its full fiscal year, the Ohio-based firm's revenues were up 5.2%, reaching a company record of $4.32 billion.

"Our fourth-quarter operating margin of 13.6% of revenue reflects the execution of our plan to sell profitable business, manage our cost structure and continuously improve the efficiency of our processes," said Scott Farmer, CEO of Cintas, in a statement. "These solid results conclude a successful year for Cintas achieved in large part by the hard work and dedication of our employees."

Organic growth in Cintas' fourth quarter – which adjusts for acquisitions – rose 6.2%, and net income increased 9.4% to $86 million. Earnings per diluted share in Q4 were $0.69, a 15% jump compared to the same period last year. For its most recent fiscal year, Cintas' net income increased 6% to $315.4 million and earnings per diluted share rose 11%. Cash flow from operations improved by 17.6% to $552.7 million. "Our balance sheet and cash flow remain very strong," Farmer said.

Despite strong sales and earnings, Cintas is offering a cautious outlook, forecasting 2014 fiscal year revenues between $4.5 billion and $4.6 billion. "While the U.S. economy has shown some signs of improvement in the past several months, much uncertainty remains," Farmer said. "This uncertainty, due to a number of factors including the effect of the Affordable Care Act, continues to cause many of our customers to delay hiring and investment decisions."

In its most recent reporting to Counselor, Cintas said it generated North American ad specialty sales of $140 million, a comparative annual decline of 13.6%. Cintas, meanwhile, continues its partnership with Touchstone (asi/345631), which agreed last year to service Cintas' enterprise promotional clients.